Müller has moved to introduce a new payment model in a bid to shore up supply of organic milk.

Increased farming costs and fluctuating farmgate milk prices have contributed to organic milk production falling since 2020, with some farmers choosing to leave the sector altogether. 

But demand has been rising and the gap between the organic market and organic production in England continues to widen, increasing reliance on imports. This has led to calls for an organic action plan. 

Müller’s new pricing model takes into account a wide range of new factors, including fluctuating organic input costs, succession challenges, labour costs and investment required to help reduce on-farm emissions.

“The future of the British organic dairy sector is at risk,” said Richard Collins, head of agriculture at Müller Milk & Ingredients. “And as organic demand remains strong, we have to find new solutions, that are fully supported by our retail partners, to protect the long-term security of supply of organic milk.”

Farmers Weekly reported that Müller is currently supplied by 60 producers but is open to expanding this. Suppliers of organic milk are currently paid a premium of 14.5p per litre over conventional.

Bovaer bounce

Some companies have suggested organic is also in high demand thanks to the food safety scare stories surrounding the methane-suppressing feed supplement Bovaer that emerged over Christmas.

Daniel Zeichner, the farming minister, has said the government is “absolutely convinced that it [Bovaer] is safe. If we are serious about reducing methane we have to look at [innovations] like this.”

Certified organic farmers are not permitted to use Bovaer. That’s because the main components that make up the supplement are not included in the list of approved products/compounds.

Patrick Holden, an organic dairy farmer and founder of the Sustainable Food Trust, has suggested that feed supplements like this amount to a “re-engineering of the cow”.